Down to the Dark
2375
The next morning, I was asked to report directly to sickbay at the start of my shift. When I arrived, I found Janeway, Tuvok, and Schmullis waiting for me in Schmullis' office.
"Ah, Commander," Schmullis greeted. "Right on time."
I came to a stop in front of his desk. "What did you find?"
"Good morning to you, too."
"Doctor," Janeway warned. She seemed as impatient as I was to find out what exactly I had to do with this whole mess.
Schmullis dipped his head. "Yes, of course." Waking his computer console, he tapped a few controls and turned the device's screen towards us. "These are the modified nanoprobes I used to repair the damage to Lieutenant Commander Eelo's heart."
The image of a single nanoprobe dominated the screen. It looked somewhat like a small spider, except it was squared rather than round and had prongs on all four sides. The image was scaled way up, of course—nanoprobes were the size of red blood cells. Along the side of the screen were tags identifying significant features of the nanoprobe.
I resisted the urge to touch my arms.
After a moment, Schmullis reached down to press an icon on the control panel. As the image rotated, the tags changed to denote modifications he'd made to the nanoprobes prior to treatment. Then Schmullis tapped another icon, bringing up a split screen image of the nanoprobe shown in Riley Frazier's report.
"It looks exactly the same," I said.
"At first glance, yes," Schmullis said. "The sample recovered by Unimatrix Zero, without a doubt, contains nanoprobes I modified to treat you. But upon closer examination, I noticed this one had an additional modification I didn't make."
Again, he tapped the panel. The image from Riley's report zoomed in on a particular feature of the tiny cyber-spider's body, then pulled up a new tag with notes scrolling beneath it. "Not only is it programmed to attach to DNA and encourage tissue regeneration, it's also programmed to stimulate genes in charge of dopamine production."
"Dopamine," I murmured as the pieces started coming together in my head. I thought of my tricorder readings on the sphere, warning me that something unknown was disrupting the neural link all around the ship. I had assumed it was another virus, but what if it was a psychiatric issue?
"What's more," Schmullis continued, "when I examined samples I took from Miss Eelo yesterday, they have this modification, as well."
In my periphery, Janeway frowned. "Are you saying this was done to the nanoprobes prior to treating Talia?"
"That's exactly what I'm saying."
A sick feeling settled in my stomach.
"You did not perform this particular modification yourself?" Tuvok asked.
"Of course I didn't!"
"We're not blaming you, Doctor," Janeway said. "We just need to get some answers. What effect do increased dopamine levels have on a person?"
"Well, that would depend on many factors. At healthy levels, dopamine is a necessary, and quite helpful, little neurotransmitter."
"And at higher levels?"
"As I said, it depends on many factors. But too much dopamine can potentially lead to rapid heartbeat, high blood pressure, muscular discomfort, psychomotor agitation, difficulty concentrating, reduced impulse control, changes in appetite, increased sexual arousal, aggressive feelings or behaviors, euphoria, grandiosity..." He hesitated.
Images of Borg drones deactivating themselves flashed through my mind, mingling with memories of Marnah's voice screaming at me when she was nowhere to be seen. "Hallucinations, delusions, distorted thought patterns, changes in speech, mood, and affect, disorganized thoughts and behaviors."
Janeway gaped at me.
"Could this have been responsible for Miss Eelo's psychotic episode?" Tuvok asked.
"Well," Schmullis said, "that coupled with high levels of stress and a genetic predisposition. But yes, I think the nanoprobes were the main culprit."
Janeway's blue eyes became hard like ice. The muscles in her face seemed to suddenly tense up, and she pressed her lips into a thin line. I knew the look. She was livid.
I still felt sick just thinking about the array of implications—not only for me, or for whoever had done this, but for the drones affected by Annika's actions.
Billions of people across hundreds of worlds experienced psychotic symptoms. In fact, most every average person could experience distortions of reality or sensory input from time to time. It was utterly normal. Those with chronic psychotic conditions that couldn't be resolved with neurosynaptic therapy generally managed their mental health with medication and, sometimes, psychotherapy.
But such a strong, sudden onset within the context of a hive mind must have been incredibly overwhelming for those drones. Coupled with the collective's programming, which instructed drones to deactivate themselves if they slipped too far away from Borg "perfection," it was no wonder they responded as they did.
"There's something else," Schmullis said, pulling my attention back to him. "Once I uncovered all of this, I was quite confused as to how the neurosynaptic therapy treatments had been successful. If the nanoprobes are still inside of Miss Eelo, and still programmed to stimulate dopamine production, she should have continued to display symptoms despite treatment. I couldn't figure it out until I noticed this—" He double-tapped on the diagram, which zoomed even closer to the mysterious modification. Schmullis then did the same to Riley's diagram.
Mine had a blocker added to one of the nodes, while Riley's did not.
"Someone tampered with them after the mission on the Borg sphere?" Janeway asked.
"That's correct, Captain."
She looked at Tuvok. "Then it wasn't Annika."
He lifted an eyebrow. "Perhaps not. However, it is possible more than one person was involved." He turned to Schmullis. "Doctor, we will require a list of all personnel who had access to these procedures."
Schmullis nodded. "Of course. I'll have it ready as soon as possible."
I tried to slip away quickly once the meeting ended, but Janeway caught me in the corridor. "Talia, are you alright?"
Pausing, I turned to her. "I'm fine, Captain."
She searched my face with worried eyes. "He should have talked to you privately first."
I shook my head. "No. I told him yesterday, there's no need to waste time. You'd have to be briefed anyway."
"Even so, it'd have been less of a shock for you to know what was coming."
"You don't—" A medical assistant passed us by, and I clamped my mouth shut.
"Your office?" Janeway suggested.
I nodded, then turned on a heel and resumed my previous course.
Once there, Janeway took a seat on the couch. "You were saying?"
As I settled into my wingback chair, a sense of unease coiled inside my chest.
"Talia?"
Shaking my head, I moved into the open seat beside her. It felt a bit more intimate than I wanted to be, but it would do.
Janeway angled a quizzical brow.
"When I sit in that chair, I'm a counselor."
She smiled. "I can understand that."
"Look, I appreciate how sympathetic everyone has been of what I've gone through, but I don't need to be treated like some fragile thing. Schmullis was concerned when I gave consent for a group briefing, too. I still wanted it, and I don't regret it. I'm fine. Yeah, I had a rough few months, but I'm not gonna break over every little thing, and I wish people would stop treating me that way."
Resting her hand on mine, she offered a sympathetic look. "Perhaps I have been a bit overly cautious in relation to your emotional state. I should know better. I've been in your place before. After escaping the Cardassian prison, people fussed over me for months—especially my mother. It was infuriating."
I smiled. "That couldn't have sat well with you."
"Not well at all," she said with a chuckle. Then, her smile faded. "To be honest, it's hard not to think about the day you returned from the mission. Seeing how sick you really were, I wondered if I'd made an error in judgement."
I placed my free hand on top of hers. "It wasn't your fault. I was sick long before the mission. I just hid it well."
"Perhaps not as well as you think. We knew something was wrong, although we didn't know what. Schmullis submitted a formal protest. Chakotay and Tom both tried to talk me out of it. Harry was downright livid." She paused, again searching my face for something. "Do you have any idea who might have done this to you, or why?"
I shook my head. "No, I don't."
"You didn't see anyone while you were in sickbay?"
"I was unconscious."
"What about after you returned from the mission on the Borg sphere?"
I closed my eyes and thought back. My memory from that time was blurry, but in the silence of retrospect I could pick out a few faces. "I know Sam Wildman was there at some point. Telfer. Dawson. Laghari. Jen Delaney."
"Ensign Delaney?"
My eyes snapped open. "Yeah, why?"
She shook her head. "Oh, no, it's nothing. I forget she kicks in on medical shifts from time to time. She's not usually there when I visit."
Something bothered me about her reaction to Jen's name, but I pushed it aside. "I can't think of anyone else."
Janeway nodded. "I'm sure Dr. Schmullis' logs will fill in the gaps." She slipped her hand from mine and twisted her fingers in her lap. "The truth is, I'd initially intended for you to be involved in the mission only as a consultant. I had no intention of letting you go yourself. But it quickly became clear that something else was going on, and that it involved you, so I allowed you to go in hopes of gaining some intelligence on whoever was behind the evidence we found. I didn't realize how unwell you were, but I knew you weren't as ready as you wanted us to believe. I sent you anyway."
"So, you made a gamble on my mental health for the sake of a mission that was critical in more ways than one."
Folding her hands, she lifted her chin and looked me in the eyes. "I did."
My gut twisted into knots. It wasn't just the ethical violation—Starfleet Medical would jump down her throat for that, and at most Command would give her a half-hearted slap on the wrist. To them, mental health was a small price to pay for a successful mission, even when the one paying that price had an established disorder.
But how was I supposed to take Janeway's confession? My captain—whom I had pledged myself to, whom I had chosen to trust so deeply and thoroughly despite what Starfleet had put me through—had risked my sanity and my life to get intel. I was worth less to her than intel.
No. That wasn't fair. This was obviously way bigger than me. She knew something—something she wasn't telling me—and it was important. Janeway wouldn't have made this call for nothing.
Still...
I nodded, locked down my hurt feelings, and took a deep breath. "This has to do with that organization you asked me about, doesn't it? Section 31."
Janeway hesitated for a moment, then nodded.
"How much do you know?"
"About their involvement in the mission? Not much."
Part of me wanted to know more about this Section 31, yet I hesitated to ask. Did I really want to know? Somehow, Marnah was involved. Evidently, someone on Voyager was, as well. And both had dragged me into their plans.
I knew the day was likely coming that I would not have a choice. Maybe it had always been inevitable. If I took action before fate caught up to me, then at least I could be prepared. If I knew, I might be safer. I wouldn't be a pawn anymore.
Swallowing all the fears lumped in my throat, I fixed my gaze firmly on Janeway's. "I want in."
She nodded. "Alright. Not here, and not yet, but when the time is right, I'll deal you in."
2404
Two days after Odo revealed Marnah's assimilated corpse to us, we held a meeting on the station to get some much-needed answers. Beyond myself, Admiral Janeway, Admiral Kira, Drs. Schmullis and Bashir, and Ambassador Odo, we also hosted First Minister Ro Laren from Bajor—a Starfleet defector to the Maquis who had assisted Marnah in evacuating the Valo system—Captain Megan Delaney of USS Fourcade, and two representatives from New Cardassia—Elim Garak and Iliana Ghemor.
"Shall we get started?" Kathryn asked.
"Begging your pardon, Admiral," Garak interjected, extending an index finger into the air and tilting his head, "but we were informed there would be a representative of the esteemed Section 31 in attendance today. May I inquire as to the whereabouts of this individual?"
Nearly every other person at the table leaned in.
"Of course, Mister Garak," Kathryn responded. "I can assure you that the individual is present and accounted for."
"Then may I inquire as to the identity of this person?"
"We called this meeting to discuss our common enemy—the Borg—and you want me to break the cover of a Federation black ops agent."
Iliana smirked, green eyes glittering as she lifted a corded brow and shrugged. "Considering the sensitivity of the information you asked us to bring to this little gathering, I think it's only fair we get something in return." She cast a haughty glance at Meg, of whom I knew she had always been suspicious—ever since our early days together on Voyager.
"I see," Kathryn said, fidgeting with the edge of her sleeve. "I had hoped for better, but I can't say that I'm surprised." She glanced around the table, lingering a moment on Meg, Schmullis, and me, then produced a sleek, shiny black delta and tossed it into the middle of the table. "I am the operative."
I followed the reactions of the room with my eyes like watching a wave move across the Korvale Ocean. Schmullis gaped. Meg kept a straight face, but tensed her jaw. Julian narrowed his eyes, while Kira's went wide. Odo grunted and crossed his arms. Ro scowled. Iliana laughed and shook her head. Garak's brows lifted as he, like me, observed everyone else.
Was I surprised? Of course not. I already knew. Still, I feigned a look of shock.
Kathryn had planned for such a request. She wasn't the only person present with connections to 31—after the Borg invaded Cardassian space, Section 31's influence over the Federation had exploded—but Garak and his new Obsidian Order didn't need to know everything. They just needed fair payment for their intel. Kathryn had chosen to pay the price herself rather than blowing someone else's cover. It was part of what had always made her a great leader. I only hoped that the decision wouldn't cost more than whatever the Cardassian intel was worth.
"Now, Mister Garak, Miss Ghemor," she said, "are you ready to tell us what you know?"
Garak smiled. "Quite, Admiral. Thank you." He turned to Iliana. "My dear?"
She scowled, and for a moment I thought she might slit his throat over the way he had addressed her. Her glare lingered as she reached into her jacket and produced a blue optolythic data rod. Coming to her feet, she leaned over the table and slid the rod into a reader at the center—right next to Kathryn's black badge. A holoprojector in the middle of the table activated automatically, displaying a Cardassian profile on Marnah.
"Eelo Fayeni of the Bajoran Resistance on Valo I and the Maquis Alliance. Known affectionately as 'Kav'Eelo' or 'General Eelo.' Formerly the department chair for Tactical Operations at Starfleet Academy. Rank, Commander. Recruited by Section 31 in the Earth-year 2328 by Captain Michael Thomas 'Iron Mike' Paris. Graduated Starfleet Academy in 2332. Married Alexander James Peters III, Terran, in 2335. First child, Alexander James Peters IV, born 2340. Second child, Eelo Talia, born 2342. Both conceived using illegal cloning and genetic enhancement techniques. Both raised with the intention of eventual recruitment into Section 31."
I glanced at Kathryn, who frowned. How did the Obsidian Order know all of that?
Iliana continued. "While serving as Chief Tactical Officer on USS Hepburn, Eelo collected intelligence on Dahar Master Kor and the Klingon Empire and passed it along to Section 31. In 2347, Eelo was contacted by the non-corporeal entity known as 'Q.' Reason, unknown. As an instructor at Starfleet Academy, Eelo helped recruit new operatives into Section 31."
Nothing too shocking there. I folded my hands on the table.
"In 2369, after the Cardassian Union withdrew all forces from Bajor, Section 31 asked Eelo Fayeni to resign her commission in Starfleet and join the remaining Bajoran Resistance on Valo I. She negotiated with several Federation colony leaders, who eventually absorbed the Bajoran Resistance into the Maquis Alliance. From 2369 to 2373, she served as a central figure in the Maquis Alliance, seeking to destabilize the Cardassian Union as per her orders from Section 31. On stardate 50564, three days after the Cardassian Union announced its induction into the Dominion, Cardassian and Jem'hadar forces attacked the Bajoran settlements on Valo I, II, and III."
"'Attacked,'" Minister Ro muttered, eyes like cold, dark stones. She scoffed and shook her head, gray and brown hair slipping over her shoulders. "Try slaughtered."
"We can argue over semantics later, Minister," Garak said. "If you'll allow Miss Ghemor to finish, I think you'll agree that this is where the file gets interesting."
Pressing her lips into a thin line, she nodded at our Cardassian guests.
Iliana wet her lips. "As per the orders of Cardassia's former leader, Gul Dukat, Eelo Fayeni was captured alive and taken to Cardassia Prime for questioning. And when I say 'questioning,' I think you all know that I'm not talking about nice chats with security officers in a cushy brig. Dukat and his Changeling master wanted every Federation secret forced out of her head using any means necessary. Unfortunately for them, she cracked but never broke. All they got from her is right here in this file. So they put her in stasis until they could develop better mind probing technology. She was archived and then, eventually, forgotten."
It was my turn to gape. "Archived and forgotten? She's a human being, but you talk about her like a data file!"
Garak inclined his head. "Apologies, Commander Eelo. You are right that it is an insensitive outlook, yet that was the general attitude of Dukat's military state. To him, and to his leadership, your mother may as well have been another data file."
"And it's the only reason he kept her alive," Iliana said. "Well, that and because the Changeling wouldn't let him publicly execute her like he wanted."
"You should know, Commander," Garak added, fixing me with a sympathetic gaze, "by the time Dukat ordered your mother be placed in stasis, she was no longer the woman you knew. Cardassian memory retrieval techniques were brutal and highly damaging. According to the medical reports, she was quite unwell. The doctor overseeing her at the time seemed to be in doubt as to whether it was, and I quote, 'worth the trouble to preserve what little is left of her mind.' I apologize that we must be so blunt."
My chest felt heavy as I sucked in a breath. I blinked back tears. "She was still a living person."
"And a citizen of Bajor and the Federation," Ro added. "No matter what state she was in, she had rights, and your people violated them."
"Didn't anyone think to return her to Bajor once the war ended?" Kira asked.
"I'm afraid that all known records of her existence were lost in the rebellion on Cardassia Prime," Garak said. "Dukat was killed, and the female Changeling never spoke of General Eelo during her tenure in Federation custody. Those of us who remained were, as the Terrans say, 'none the wiser.'"
Kira turned to Odo. "You never learned any of this from the female Changeling when you linked with her?"
"If I had, I would have told you."
"But why would she keep that a secret? What good could it possibly do for her?"
Odo shrugged. "Why not? It's not as if it cost her anything to keep it. After all, no one knew that Eelo Fayeni was still alive. Maybe she just wanted a secret to keep."
"All of this is beside the point," Minister Ro said. "The point is that Fayeni survived, was taken back to Cardassia, had her brain scrambled up, was put in stasis and forgotten, and then was assimilated by the Borg."
"More than that," Schmullis added, "she somehow ended up dead in a rival collective's territory."
"Curious that they didn't simply assimilate her," Julian said.
"Are you quite certain that they didn't make any attempt to assimilate her?" Garak asked.
"Oh, there's no doubt. All of her cybernetic implants are of the J-25 collective's design, and her neural link was fully in tact. The Gamma Collective didn't touch her."
"Could they be negotiating terms with J-25?" Ro asked.
I shook my head. "I have never found any evidence to suggest that the Borg have incorporated negotiation into their programming."
"Maybe the Borg have made a friend who can think outside of the box," Iliana said.
"Doesn't sound very Borg-like," Ro argued.
"Neither does negotiating."
"Seems more likely than making a friend and not assimilating them."
"At the moment," Kathryn interjected, "both possibilities merit further consideration."
"Agreed," Garak said. "Captain Delaney, may I presume that you are in attendance because you were the one to make this discovery?"
Meg nodded. "That's right."
"Was there anything else of note in the vicinity of General Eelo's body? Other drones, for example, or physical evidence of the circumstances surrounding the vessel's demise?"
"There were several other bodies in the area. A few were preserved, but others were in pieces."
"J-25 drones?" Ro asked.
"No, Gamma. The wreckage, too, came from a Gamma sphere. As far as my crew could tell, Eelo was the only J-25 on board. Though, there wasn't much left to go on."
"Maybe she was a weapon," Kira suggested.
"Again," I reiterated, "that presumes a great deal more creative thought than the Borg are known to be capable of."
"Maybe so," Kathryn said, "but it's another option to consider."
"All these guesses," Iliana said. "Does anyone here have any answers?"
"We know one thing," Kathryn replied. "For the first time in almost thirty years, the J-25 and Gamma collectives have had some form of interaction with one another. Regardless of the how and the why, we're currently in the middle of their collectives, and that's bad news for us."
